Redelijk Gelovig: geloven in een seculiere wereld
Steeds meer mensen voelen zich leeg of eenzaam, ondanks een leven vol sociale media en sociale drukte. Dat is geen toeval: als de lijn tussen mens en God verzwakt, moet de lijn naar de ander plots alle gewicht alleen dragen, en daaronder plooit ze. Een eeuwenoud inzicht uit Genesis en een simpele driehoek tonen waarom, en welk klein gebaar die balans deze week al kan herstellen.
My son Laurens has autism, and lately, it’s been really hard for me. “What did I do to deserve this?” I sometimes find myself thinking. When I don’t have an answer, what keeps me going aren’t grand insights but rather established habits. And this week, it was a good conversation with a friend and the chance to serve others that, together, gave me more than I expected.
Last time, we left off with a skeptical 18-year-old on his way to Italy. In Assisi, he stumbles upon a statue of doves—and a memory his mind can’t make sense of. Thirty years later, he’s still not sure what happened. But it set something in motion that couldn’t be stopped.
Every Sunday, there are new faces in the church, and most of them don’t come back. Not because faith is difficult, but for another reason. About the church as a means, not an end; about the cost of individualism; and about the body of Christ as an answer to a void that extends far beyond religion alone.
God hears every prayer, but the answer rarely comes the way you expect. Four reasons why the silence after a prayer doesn't mean no one is listening, with Scripture references to support each point.
Apostle Gerrit W. Gong has dedicated an in-depth video to AI, offering clear warnings about what technology can never replace: prayer, growth through effort, true friendship, and the silence of nature. I believe we should focus on the triangle between God, others, and ourselves—a relationship that no algorithm should ever interfere with.
Peter steps out of the boat, walks on the water, and sinks. The traditional lesson says: make sure your faith is stronger. But what if that’s not the point of the story at all? Christ knew in advance that Peter would sink—and immediately reached out his hand. No reproach, no delay. That changes everything about how we view this story, and how we view ourselves in a time...
How can you pray? Don't be disappointed if it doesn't always work. The purpose of prayer is the effect it has on you.
The nerd who wanted nothing to do with God: a boy who read encyclopedias from cover to cover, imagined chickens away from their coops, and neatly filed God away under the category of dogma. Until a school trip to Italy took him to Assisi—and everything changed.
When we serve our fellow human beings, we serve God, and we take our place under the yoke of Christ, which makes the burden light because He shares it with us. The world may seem too big to help, but the gospel never operates on a wholesale basis—only on a retail basis, one person at a time, one heart at a time. One small gesture toward the person right in front of you might be exactly the miracle he prayed for this morning.
Redelijk Gelovig: geloven in een seculiere wereld
